USA > Indiana > An illustrated history of the state of Indiana: being a full and authentic civil and political history of the state from its first exploration down to 1879 > Part 34
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There is considerable bog-iron ore in this county, large quantities of which were successfully made into pig-iron in the days of the canal, but when that system of inland com- munication was abandoned, the smelting works were discon- tinued. With the establishment of railroads, these will be re-established and the valuable mineral resources of the State developed. There are also some valuable mineral waters in this county, which will be the means, when brought to notice, of attracting considerable attention.
The agricultural advantages of Clay county cannot be com- pared with those of other counties, but farming is conducted with moderately good results. Stock raising is also profitable.
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HISTORY OF INDIANA.
There is an abundance of good timber, consisting chiefly of white, red and black oak.
The county seat of the county is Bowling Green. This place has now a population of over one thousand, and is grow- ing rapidly. It has first-class school facilities. The inhab- itants are quite enterprising, and keep pace with the age in their publie improvements of all kinds. The schools of the county are, for the most part, very acceptable, yet there is much room for improvement-an improvement that will soon be inaugurated. Brazil, with a population of over three thousand, is the largest town in the county.
The county is very generally settled, and mostly its inhab- itants are in a sound condition financially. The farmers are all increasing their comforts, and adding to their means. In every part of the county may be seen evidences of thrift and good feeling.
OWEN COUNTY.
OWEN county was settled in 1816-17. The first settlers were David Thompson, Philip Hart, Captain Bigger, John Dunn and Robert Blair. The county was named for Colonel Abraham Owen, who was in the battle of Tippecanoe, on the eighth of November, 1811. He was a volunteer aid-de-camp to General Harrison.
The first court held in the county took place at the residence of John Dunn, in March, 1819, located about one mile east of Spencer, Judge Blackford presiding, when Philip Hart, the second settler, was fined twenty-one dollars and costs for com- mitting an assault on Dr. David Thompson, the first white settler of the county. Here is a case where the second settler whipped the first settler. The respect shown to "first set- tlers" in those days, however, is evinced by the fine. The first white child born in the county was John R. K. Dunn, whose father established the first ferry on the west fork of the White river. In the year 1S1S, William Baker built a mill on Raccoon creek, and soon after a few of the carly settlers "rig- ged up a corn-cracker" on a small stream near the present town of Gosport.
John Dunn was the third settler of the county. He came
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GREENE COUNTY.
in the winter, when the ground was covered with eight inches of snow, and arriving on the banks of the White river in Feb- ruary, 1817, with his family, without a house of any kind to protect them from the cold, he commenced life in a rude camp, and at once set about building a log house, which he accom- plished after great difficulty and suffering.
Spencer, the county seat, was located in 1820. The site was donated by Richard Becm, Isaiah Cooper, John Bartholo- mew and Philip Hart. It was laid out by James Galletly and others. Spencer is very pleasantly situated in the valley of the west fork of the White river, on the Indiana and Vin- cennes railroad. It has a population of about fifteen hundred, and is in a flourishing condition. The town is named for Cap- tain Spier Spencer, who fell at Tippecanoe.
There is some of the finest landscape scenery in this county to be found in the State. The county has also its curiosities, in the "Boone Cave," and the various Indian mounds. We have been unable to procure as full statistics from this county as we desired, but have ascertained that the schools in the rural districts are in a fair condition, while those in the towns are equal to any in the State.
GREENE COUNTY.
Tms county, which was named in honor of Gen. Nathaniel Greene, was organized in 1821. The county seat was first located at Burlington, but was afterwards removed to Bloom- field. The county has a population of about 26,000, and there is every reason to suppose that it will be nearly, if not quite, doubled in the next decade.
The resources of the county are excellent. The soil is good, and there is an abundance of coal, iron ore, and limestone. The coal and iron are easily mined, and exist in great quanti- ties. Extensive business interests will, undoubtedly, spring up out of the mineral resources of this county, which will be fully developed in the course of the next five or ten years. The extensive coal fields only await increased facilities for transportation.
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HISTORY OF INDIANA.
Bloomfield is the county seat, and is in a flourishing condi- tion. The public buildings are in good order. Good schools and school buildings exist in every quarter, with a few excep- tions, and the religious societies represented have all substan- tial houses of worship.
The first settlers of the county were John Van Vorst and Daniel Carlin, who came in the spring of 1818. In Novem- ber of the same year, Peter C. Vanslyker, Sen., and his son, Cornelius P., came with their families. In the spring of 1819, James Warwick, R. Hill, Thomas Bradford, W. Robinson, and Wm. Scott settled near the others. In 1819, the Indians who resided in the county, departed for their western homes. They bid an affectionate adien to the graves of their forefathers, and to their favorite hunting grounds. The scene was an impressive one, and was long remembered by the settlers of that year.
Worthington, in this county, is also a very lively town. The White River Valley Times is published at this place. The town has unusual commercial advantages, and is destined to become a prominent business centre.
LAWRENCE COUNTY:
IN 1810, a few heroic pioneers, fearless of danger, accustomed to Indian life and usage, and lovers of border pastimes, settled in Lawrence county. They came originally from Virginia, and had remained one year in Kentucky, intending to settle per- manently there, but changed their minds. At this carly day, especially in this section of the State, the hardy settler was not permitted to erect his log cabin in peace. Tecumseh and the Prophet had been at work, and the Indians were, at that time, pretty well aroused. But these pioneers resolved to settle in Lawrence county, and were not disposed to fear the Indians. Their first business was to crect a fort, which was located about one mile and a half north of Leesville, near where the old resi- dence of " Granny White" stood for so many years afterwards. This little fort was put up as a necessary defense of the pro- posed settlement, and, although not of heavy proportions, withstood many assaults from the Indians. The settlement
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LAWRENCE COUNTY.
was made by Daniel Gunthric, a hero of Braddock's defeat, his sons, and Jacob and William Flinn. These have all, long ago, gone to their rest and their rewards.
The little settlement had scarcely been formed, when the Delawares began to make raids upon it, stealing everything not secured within the fort. Horses were their favorite spoils, and it was difficult for the settlers to keep their animals, with- out the strictest watch. These Indians scarcely ever made open war on the settlement, but, professing friendship in day, they would come in bands by night, and steal anything they could obtain. At one time, a party of these Indians was pursned by Major Tipton, at the head of fifty militia. On this occasion the stolen property was recovered, and the In- dians severely punished.
On the tenth of March, 1815, the settlement, which by this time had been largely increased, was attacked by a body of Pottawatomies. This was a desperate day for the few carly settlers of Lawrence county. John Gunthrie was shot, and Josiah Flinn scalped and tomahawked. Gunthrie was saved from death by the heroism of his wife, who lifted him up and carried him to the fort, where he recovered. Jacob Flinn was captured at the same time, and carried off, but, after several months, he managed to escape from his persecutors; but, be- foro he reached the settlement, or obtained food of any kind, except roots, he was reduced with hunger until his weight was less than fifty pounds. His adventure was only one among the thousands of thrilling incidents of pioneer life in the north- west that will never be fully recorded.
In the winter of 1813-14, Roderick Rawlins made a settle- ment in the bottoms, near the site of the present town of Scottville. He was accompanied by two other parties. They built a rude cabin in the winter, and felled a large number of trees for a clearing, and, in the spring, visited Jeffersonville, during which time their hut was robbed. In 1815, Edward Johnston made a settlement opposite Scottville, on the farm afterwards owned by Harry Bright. Other settlements were also made, but nothing of importance transpired in the way of improvements in the county until 1816, at the date of the
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HISTORY OF INDIANA.
erection of the State, when a new spirit of enterprise seized the settlers, and the great tide of immigration commenced.
In 1816-17 and 18, numerous settlements were made in the county, but during these years, and for several thereafter, there was great suffering among the settlers. They were nearly all very poor, and there was not available market for the scanty produce which their industry yielded. But after many years of toil, and constant hardship, these pioneers have emerged from poverty to wealth, from toil to comfort.
From 1815 the little fort fell into disuse, and finally into ruins, but the spot upon which it stood will always be sacred to the people of Lawrence county, as that around which all the exciting scenes and incidents of pioneer life centered.
Lawrence county was named after Captain Lawrence, of the navy, and was organized in 1818. The county seat was at first located at Palestine. As an object for locating the capital of the county at this point, Messrs. B. and E. Blackwell and II. M. Massie donated the authorities two hundred acres of land. The first court house was erected at Palestine, and was of hewed logs that would "face a foot." It was two stories, twenty by twenty-four feet. The old settlers inform us that there was as much political wrangling over the erection of this log court house, as over the one recently erected at Bed- ford, the present county seat. The first court held in the county, convened at the house of James Gregory, in June, 1818. Ilon. Thomas II. Blake was the presiding judge, and John Milroy and William Erwin were the associate judges.
In 1825, owing to the unhealthy condition of Palestine, the county scat was removed to Bedford. This was a happy change; one that marked the commencement of the real prosperity of the county. Bedford is now a town of over two thousand inhabitants, in which is one of the finest court houses in Indiana, having cost over one hundred thousand dollars. The school building, in which the graded schools are located, is an honor to the town and county. It has been erected at a cost of over thirty thousand dollars, and is capable of seating as many pupils as can be properly attended to in one school. This house is elegantly appointed and fully sup-
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JACKSON COUNTY.
plied with all the necessary agencies for imparting instruction in all branches of education.
There are in the county orer one hundred and twenty good school buildings. The children of the county, between the ages of six and twenty-one, number five thousand seven hun- dred and seventeen. The population of the county is about nineteen thousand. The town of Mitchell has also a fine graded school, of which the people of that place are justly proud.
The resources of Lawrence county compare favorably with the other counties of the State, while its educational facilities are considerably ahead of most counties of equal population and wealth.
JACKSON COUNTY.
JACKSON county has a good soil, well adapted to the produc- tion of all kinds of grain. Some parts of the county, how- ever, have a clay soil, which is very poor. The county was first settled in 1809, by parties from the falls of the Ohio and from Kentucky. When they first came to the county they met with a few French traders, who complained that the trade with the Indians had been ruined by the war. These French- men left the county, and went, probably, to Vincennes. Among the first Americans who settled in the county, were II. and A. Rogers, Abram Miller, J. B. Durham, James Hutchinson, Thomas Ewing, John Ketcham, William Gra- ham, Abram Huff, Thomas Carr, and Alexander Craig.
In 1812, the Indians became troublesome, and some of the settlers removed to escape their wrath; others sent their fam- ilies, but remained themselves. They built a little fort for their defense, which alone saved them from the "Pigeon Roost " massacre, where, in 1812, twenty families perished beneath the tomahawk. This little fort was frequently besieged, but always held out. The Indians, however, drove off all the horses and cattle, and otherwise impoverished the settlers.
John Keteham lived near the site of the present town of Brownstown, where he had a block house for his own protec-
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HISTORY OF INDIANA.
tion. In the fall of 1813, Mr. Ketcham and a hired man named Buskirk, were hanling pumpkins from a field to the house, Mr. Ketcham driving and the other man following the team, when they were fired upon by Indians. Buskirk was instantly killed, and Ketcham was wounded and would have been tomahawked, only that his team became exceedingly frightened and ran away, taking him along on the cart.
The news of this disaster was at once sent to the fort already mentioned, which was at Vallonia, where a company of militia had been organized. The troops started out the following day, and finding the body of Buskirk, buried it, but so bold were the Indians, in their assaults upon the militia, that one of the men lost his life, being fired on by the enemy from some hiding place. During the war of 1812-13, several persons were shot and killed or wounded in this county. The Indians were very hostile, and- kept a close watch for an opportunity to pick off the settlers. However, the only battle fought in the county during the war, was at Tipton Island, in 1814 There were about fifty Indians opposed to thirty whites, but they were quickly dispersed, leaving one or two killed upon the field. This encounter was conducted by General Tipton, the commander.
Jackson county was organized in 1815, by an act of the Territorial legislature. In the following spring, the county seat was located at Brownstown, which received its name in honor of General Jacob Brown, who distinguished himself in the war of 1812. Brownstown was laid out in the woods, and, in consequence, the county seat was temporarily located at Vallonia. Very soon after the organization of the county, the population began to increase, and general improvement was pushed forward. The surplus produce of the early set- tlers was generally shipped down the Driftwood river in flat- boats, but since the completion of the Ohio and Mississippi railroad, the trade of the county has been carried to Cincin- nati.
In 1830, a number of Germans settled in the eastern part of the county. They were a very enterprising class of people, and since their first residence in the county their numbers
481
WELLS COUNTY - HISTORICAL.
have been largely increased. They have done much to pro- mote the material and moral growth of the county, and are mostly all wealthy.
Brownstown, one of the principal towns in the county, is located on the Ohio and Mississippi railroad, and is in a flour- ishing condition. It has a fair court house and good school facilities; population about one thousand. The largest place in the county is Seymour, a town of over three thousand inhabitants. It has every appearance of thrift, and is press- ing forward in all valnable industries and improvements.
CHAPTER LX.
WELLS COUNTY - HISTORICAL AND DESCRIPTIVE.
TIIE first smoke of civilization, said the Hon. Newton Bur- well, within the limits of Wells county, curled above the log cabin of Dr. Joseph Knox. That cabin was reared in the year 1829, on the western bank of the Wabash, about five miles below Bluffton, and on the farm now occupied and owned by Mr. Henry Miller. There was made the first foothold on the Indian's hunting ground, on the Wabash river, between Fort Recovery and the town of Huntington. It was there, about forty years ago, in the solitude of that awful wilderness, when the first sound of the white man's axe disturbed the wolf and panther in their jungle, and echoed throughout the wilderness the knell of the red man's destiny.
Messrs. Vantrees and Warner, sons-in-law of Dr. Knox, soon afterwards settled near him, and made the first openings on the farms known, respectively, as the James and Robert Harvey farms. These three families lived there about three years, when, becoming tired of pioneer life, they sold their interests in the lands on which they had settled and left the
31
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HISTORY OF INDIANA.
country. Mr. Miller succeeded Dr. Knox in November, 1832, and "fell to work with strong heart and arms," and by dint of his industry, the little field and truck-patch that sur- rounded the cabin of his predecessor, and afforded him a scanty supply of coarse bread and vegetables, have been trans- formed into extended meadows, a fine large orchard, and fields that were last autumn waving with golden grain. His brother, Jacob Miller, settled a short distance below him about the same time.
Following the address of the gentleman referred to in the opening sentence of this chapter, we learn that Mr. Allen Nor- cross had settled on the opposite bank of the Wabash about a year before Dr. Knox and his friends left, and was there when Henry Miller moved into the settlement.
The Black Hawk war, which in the year 1832 raged so fear- fully in Illinois, and which spread such consternation through- ont the western settlement, began to alarm these new comers, and Mr. Norcross "pulled up stakes," and with his family returned to his native State, where he remained until there was no longer any danger to be apprehended.
This was a trying time with the two brothers and their families, who were thus left alone in the wilderness. When we take into consideration that Black Hawk, himself so heart- less and blood-thirsty, was daily increasing his force by acces- sions from the restless and disaffected of the western tribes, and that he had received encouragement from the British in Canada, it is no wonder that these families, so destitute of means of defense, and so far from material aid, should be terror-stricken at the rumors that occasionally reached their ears. The facilities for getting war news were not so good as they are now. Then the western lightning had not been taught to carry messages, nor had that animal, so peculiarly domestic, the Iron Horse, been introduced into the wilderness. There was not even, at that time, a government mail carried on horseback through the western settlement to give informa- tion from the seat of war. Weeks, or even months, might intervene without knowing how many white families had been made victims of the savage butchers, and then they would
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WELLS COUNTY - DESCRIPTIVE.
only get the news from some wanderer, on his return from a western trapping or fur-buying excursion, as he might chance to come that way. Thus, these pioneers were liable to be in constant fear, for they knew not but that the next news would be brought by the dusky warriors themselves, who would deal out death to them before they could have an opportunity of escape.
In the years 1834-35-36, immigration set in rapidly. Among the first settlers were Adam Miller, Charles Bennett, Thomas W. Van Horn, David Bennett, Solomon Johnson, Solomon Sparks, Mason Powell, R. C. Bennett, Sen., Isaac Covert, Wm. Covert, Adnalı Hall, Thomas T. Smith, Bowen Hale, James Scott, Wm. HI. Parmalee, Wm. McDole, Abram McDole, Wm. Priliaman, Solomon Kemp, John A. Deam, Chads Chalfant, James Guthrey, Gabriel Markley, John Markley, Daniel Mil- ler, Michael Miller, Joseph Logan, Elim Hooker, and a few others.
The following sketch of pioncer life in Wells county, from the pen of Mr. Burwell, we quote entire. It is interesting and truthful. Concerning the early settlers, he says: "They settled in different parts of the county, or, rather, within the limits of the county, for the county was not yet organized. That was, indeed, a time that tried men's souls. If we will but reflect on the condition of affairs then, and consider the privations these early settlers had to suffer, we will readily see how unjust, and almost criminal it is for us to complain of our condition now, surrounded as we are by the bounties of a kind Providence. Then they had to go fifty or sixty miles to mill, carry their grists on horses through the trackless wilderness, and would be from five to eight days in making the trip, of course camped out at night, and very often awakened from their dreams by the approach of wolves and other wild animals in pursuit of prey. During their trips for provisions, their wives were left at home to superintend affairs; hoed the corn and potatoes, and attended to other no less arduous work. by day, and passed sleepless nights in watching and protecting their little ones from the jaws of hungry wolves and panthers whose howls and screams they nightly heard around their
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HISTORY OF INDIANA.
cabins. A few of those brave women are present to-day, sur. rounded by stout, middle-aged sons and daughters, who were then the objects of their solicitude.
" It is hard for the present generation of people, surrounded as they now are by all the improvements, comforts and luxu- ries of our civilization, to realize that the old settlers suffered and endured the many hardships that they can tell about. When they would run out of bread-stuff's, and their neighbors had none to lend them, they would pound up their corn in a wooden mortar which was improvized for the purpose, and some of them will now tell you of having lived for months on bread made from meal prepared in that way. The fine part was made into bread and the coarser into hominy. They could not go off to mill at any time. It must be remembered that there were no roads in those days, and the streams were not bridged; so that it was sometimes not only inconvenient, but extremely dangerous, to go fifty miles to mill. James Guthrey had a son and horse drowned crossing the Limberlost, on his way to Greenville to mill."
The history of Wells county politically, dates back to the first of May, 1837, a little more than thirty-seven years. At this date, the legislature of the State provided for the incor- poration of the county, with a regular jurisdiction. The first circuit court met at the house of R. C. Bennett, on the nine- teenth day of October, 1837, HIon. C. W. Ewing, presiding. The county seat was permanently located at Bluffton, in 1838. For many years it was a small hamlet, but, after a long and severe struggle, it has become a prominent business center, with ample railroad communication with the surrounding country. Bluffton has the appearance to-day of a substantial, well built town. The streets are regularly laid out, and are for the most part graded and graveled, and provided with substantial sidewalks. The court house is located in the busi- ness center of the town, and although a little out of style, is still useful and durable. The schools and school buildings are the pride of the town. The county is new, and only par- tially developed, but a majority of the farmers are already wealthy. The people are beginning to cultivate a spirit
485
MONROE COUNTY.
friendly to all kinds of public improvements. The soil is rich in agricultural resources, and there is every prospect of a con- tinnous rapid growth in all the industries and professions rep- resented in the county.
CHAPTER LXI.
MONROE COUNTY - THE INDIANA STATE UNIVERSITY.
O UR sketch of Monroe county is made shorter than was at first designed, on account of the importance of the State university, which is located at Bloomington, in that county.
The soil of the county is well adapted to all kinds of grain indigenous to the State. There is an abundance of valuable timber in many parts of the county, for which there is a ready market. The surface of the county is well watered with num- erous beautiful springs and small streams. The western portion of the county abounds in coal and iron ore of a superior quality. These inexhaustible mineral deposits are now comparatively dormant, awaiting only increased railroad facilities to awaken a commercial activity over them. There is an abundance of excellent building stone in the county, and several quarries are now working a large number of hands profitably in supplying the adjacent towns and cities with stone for building purposes. There are already ample railroad facilities for nearly all parts of the county. The farmers find a ready and profitable market for their produce. Most of them have become wealthy, and nearly all of them are in good circumstances.
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